Soderling posted his most dominant win since defeating Frenchman Edouard Roger-Vasselin by the same scoreline last September in Kuala Lumpur. He broke Junqueira six times from seven opportunities, limiting his opponent to just seven service points won during the 47-minute match.

Soderling, who improves to a 35-9 season record, is through to Bastad quarter-finals for a sixth straight year. He won the title in 2009 (d. Monaco) and was a runner-up to Nicolas Almagro last year.

Third seed and two-time Bastad finalist Tomas Berdych hit nine aces past Teymuraz Gabashvili of Russia for a 6-2, 6-2 win in 86 minutes. The Czech, who will be hoping to win his sixth ATP World Tour title this week, won 69 per cent of his service points.

Spaniard Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo, the oldest player in the draw at 33 years and six months, did not grant Andrey Golubev his first clay-court match win of the year (0-12), when the World No.142 beat the seventh-seeded Kazakhstani 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-2 in two hours and 11 minutes. Golubev is now 4-20 on the season.

In one other first-round match, Austrian Andreas Haider-Maurer hit 11 aces to defeat another Kazak, Mikhail Kukushkin, 7-5, 6-2 in 86 minutes. He converted six of eight break point opportunities.

Rain has hindered play through the day, with a heavy shower suspending the action for more than one hour at 3:25 p.m. local time.